these various ephemeral assets intoxicate the one who possesses them, make him be infected with a deceptive vanity. Having become sufficient, he finds himself unable to address the Lord with sincerity, to pronounce with his soul his Holy Name, "O Krishna." Now, the original scriptures "the true gospel" reveal to us that by pronouncing even once the Holy Name of the Lord, we can free ourselves from a greater number of faults and sins than we can never commit it. This is the power of the Holy Name.
These are the four objects of material progress -1) a noble lineage, 2) great riches, 3) a high education, and 4) seductive bodily traits, represent in one sense, as many obstacles on the path of spiritual progress.
The material body happens to be an outer shell of the soul, of a purely spiritual nature. When a soul progressing on the spiritual path becomes poorer materially, as sometimes happens, there is no cause for alarm, for this is a favorable sign. Man must lead his existence in such a way as to mitigate his material "drunkenness," which can only plunge him further into the illusion of the real purpose of existence. And whoever lives under the influence of illusion does not qualify to enter the kingdom of God.
In general, holy beings do not preserve great material goods, but they nevertheless possess a secret treasure: the Lord. Material desires are very much in harmony with spiritual progress. Unless we are able to see everything as spiritual, that is, in relation to the Supreme Lord, it is necessary to always make a clear distinction between the spiritual and the material.
The progress of material civilization, from which the unfolding of the material concept of life, stands as a great obstacle on the path of spirituality, because it continues to bind the soul more and more to its carnal envelope and to all the sufferings. which are related to him. It is therefore right that material progress is considered undesirable. Moreover, it is not difficult to see, in the current context of material progress, that attention is distracted by a host of unwanted, useless objects, all created from a material conception of the material. existence, as is the case, to cite an example, cosmetics, expensive, and intended for the body alone. In this direction, human energy is wasted as it turns away from the pursuit of spiritual realization, which is the greatest need of man. The devotees of the Lord, for their part, detach themselves from material things, whence the term extremely indigent; quite poor and destitute, ascribed to them. In truth, the various material objects are all products of the three gunas, which divert us from the spiritual energy, and the less we possess, the more our spiritual progress will be facilitated.